4-day North Luzon environment caravan starts

TUGUEGARAO CITY – North Luzon’s own version of people’s caravan for the environment will kick off today in Cagayan’s northernmost town and ends in Pampanga following a number of stopovers for environment-related fora along the way.

The four-day 500-km North Luzon leg of the motorcade, dubbed Lakbay Para sa Kalika­san para sa Buhay at Kinabu­kasan” is part of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – led 18-day nationwide caravan leading to the world’s Earth Day celebration on April 22 with the country’s theme for this year “Tubig ay Buhay - Ating Pagyamanin at Linisin.”

DENR Cagayan Valley Director Clarence Baguilat said that the region’s leg of the caravan will start in Santa Praxedes, Cagayan and culminates at SM Pampanga on April 4. The caravan will feature information dissemination on the government programs and activities that would mitigate the effect on global warming.

This year’s United Nations-initiated Earth Day celebration, he said, also aimed to generate further awareness for environmental protection and conservation.

The four-day caravan has its several stops for brief environmental fora in Isabela, Quirino and Nueva Vizcaya before proceeding to Pam­panga where the participants from all over Luzon and other parts of the country meet for the culminating activities, which will feature an environment fair on climate change and global warming, solid waste management, wildlife conservation and the government’s Green Philippines program.

In his memorandum order to the DENR regional office, Environment Secretary Jose Atienza Jr. said that the caravan intends to draw and encourage participation of various sectors to include local government units, national government agencies, the academe, non-government organizations, church, business sector and the public at large on the need to protect and conserve the environment.